


About the Boys

by khughes830



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: About a Boy, Alternate Universe, Gen, M/M, My girl Cora Brewer, Reel Schitt’s Creek Prompt Fest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:01:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24199396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/khughes830/pseuds/khughes830
Summary: David Rose is living a lonely life with just the family money to keep him company.  Patrick Brewer is living a half complete life with his daughter Cora.  The Brewers move in next door to David, who forgets to shut his front door one fateful morning.  (Movie prompt chosen: About a Boy)
Relationships: Patrick Brewer/David Rose
Comments: 30
Kudos: 162
Collections: Reel Schitt's Creek Prompt Fest





	About the Boys

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [Reel_Schitts_Creek](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reel_Schitts_Creek) collection. 



> My first time ever participating in one of these prompt fests. I loved the winter one and decided to give it a go. 
> 
> Full Disclosure: I’ve seen the Hugh Grant/Toni Collette version once. And it’s been awhile. I’m not really a movie girl - I enjoy them but what I really love is TV. It is why I chose this. Because I did watch the About a Boy show with David Walton and Minnie Driver. I loved that something fierce and was sad it only last two seasons. 
> 
> I live in America. So consider this set somewhere in the 48 states. Dealers choice. (I mean, I figured with the mentions of the 4th of July it would be obvious but there you go.)
> 
> Lines are taken from the movie since TV quotes can be hard to find sometimes. I also know in the movie the two main characters DO NOT get together. If you are looking for me to adhere strictly to the movie storyline, you might want to just skip this. This is David and Patrick. NO WAY do they not end up together in my world.
> 
> If you are the Anon who requested this, I hope this meets your expectations. I took some absolute liberties with the request (sorry about Rachel) so I hope you still enjoy this. 
> 
> Also, I created Cora Brewer in my last story (Start of Something Good) which is another reason I picked this prompt. She was fun. This might just be the longest thing I have ever written and I finished it at the last minute (sometime yesterday and did my final re-read last night). I don’t have a Beta or anything so mistakes are my own. Can’t wait to see all the stories.

**JUNE**

It was the clanking of the bottles against each other as one fell out of his hand and hit the other on the floor that woke David from his drunken stupor. He ran his hand over his face, grabbing his phone and looking at the time. 12:15 PM. He was pretty sure it was Friday but it’s not like that really mattered any. David slowly rolled off of the couch, groaning as he pushed himself up. How did he get back last night?

He looked at his phone again.

_ Stevie: Dick, some of us actually have to work tomorrow. Not everyone gets to live off your dad’s video/motel empire. Don’t ever call me at 130am again unless you are on fire and Alexis didn’t answer first. _

Great. Yet another round of apologies for Drunk David needed to be extended to Stevie, his dad’s right hand woman and one of the few people that could tolerate David most of the time.

David stretched, running his fingers through his hair, opening the back door off his kitchen to the small backyard, hoping to take in some fresh air and peace and quiet. Which was quickly pushed aside to men yelling at each other from the house next door. David quickly moved through his house, throwing open the front door, to see a large moving truck in the driveway. Large boxes and furniture strewn across the yard and driveway, moving men yelling at each other.

“Oh My God! Can you keep it down, some of us are still trying to sleep!” David screamed out across the small hedge, to no one in particular.

“It’s literally after noon on a Friday! Get out of bed!” A loud, male voice yelled back at him. David quickly whipped his head around, looking for who yelled at him but not finding anyone to direct his glare at. 

_ Fucking neighbors. _ David wished he had been able to talk his dad into letting him buy the place next door that had sat empty since Christmas. But without a good reason or wanting to actually take on the responsibility of the place, Johnny said no. Absolutely not. David tried to get Stevie or Alexis to move in but neither really wanted to live that close to David (their words, not his). And for six months, he had been lucky. Seemed that his luck ran out today. 

David pulled open the fridge, hoping that some miracle had filled it since yesterday, but that miracle had not occurred. He pulled out his phone, mumbling to himself. He desperately needed to order some food to absorb the alcohol he still had in his system. Pizza or Chinese. Pizza or Chinese.

“I like Chinese” David heard from the door. He looked up, seeing a small person standing in his entry. 

“What the actual fuck?”

“You left your door open, that’s what the actual fuck.”

David’s eyes went wide and he reared back. “Excuse me, little person, but how did you get in?”

“Again. You left the door open.”

“You shouldn’t cuss.”

“Neither should you. My dad says people who cuss are just uncreative with their language.”

“Your dad sounds like a horse’s ass. Wait. Do I know your dad?”

“Well, he did just scream at you to get out of bed so…”

“Oh Christ on a cracker, a KID MOVED IN NEXT DOOR!” David’s luck didn’t just run out, it crash landed and exploded into a ball of fire. A child. An actual child living within shouting distance. 

“Trust me, it wasn’t my choice either” she replied, walking further into David’s house. David looked on in slight horror as this small girl dropped onto his couch, kicking off her shoes and curling up in the corner.

“This is a really comfy couch.”

“What the hell…”. David walked over, staring at her, arms hanging at his side, eyes wide.

“I’m Cora, by the way, Cora Brewer.”

“I didn’t ask.”

“It’s rude not to introduce yourself to new people.”

“It’s rude to just walk into people’s homes uninvited and make yourself comfortable too.”

“Are you going to tell me your name or not?”

“It’s David. David Rose. You can go now.”

“Nah. The movers are all over our house and there is really nowhere to go. Do you have cable? Ours isn’t going to be on till tomorrow.”

David just stared at this little girl, who apparently had no boundaries. He should have screamed at her to get out. He should have dragged her back over to her father next door. What he did instead was hand her the remote. He would never be able to answer why he did that. 

“I also have Netflix if you just…”

The little girl… Cora, yeah that’s what she said her name was… waved him off. “It’s a universal remote. I can figure it out. You stink, by the way.”

David sniffed himself, agreeing quickly.

“I need a shower.”

“And a cleaning lady.”

“She comes Monday.”

“So you are going to live like this all weekend? Gross.”

“You don’t have to stay.”

“You have ALL the cable channels! Why would I leave?”

David just stared at her. Rarely did anyone voluntarily want to hang around his place. But this little girl was making herself at home. She was small and didn’t really take up a lot of room.

David sighed and turned on his heel, heading upstairs. “Don’t break anything.”

“And what would that look like if I did? Would you even be able to tell?”

“You’re mouthy.”

“Yeah. Will you get extra pot stickers? I love pot stickers.”

David really wanted pizza but found himself hitting order on a Chinese delivery before he got in the shower.

000

Stevie rolled her eyes as she took the delivery order from the driver, being grateful that David had at least gotten it delivered instead of asking her to bring it to him. She walked in, kicking the door closed behind her.

“I’ve got your food, dipshit.”

“Dipshit is still in the shower. You might want to go check on him. He’s been in there awhile” Stevie screamed, jumping backwards, almost dropping the food on the floor. She finally found the voice - there was a small girl sitting on David’s couch, watching TV. Stevie looked around, confused.

“I’m at David Rose’s place, right?”

“Yeah. Is this your first time here or something?”

“Uh… no… wait… who are you?”

“Cora Brewer.” Stevie just stared at her, like that name was supposed to make sense.

“Did you get lost?”

“No. David has cable. We don’t. Not till tomorrow.”

“What the hell is going on?”

“I’ve been asking myself the same thing” she heard David say from behind her as he walked down the steps. Stevie handed him the bag of food. “David, why is there a little girl on your couch watching TV?”

“Stevie, I honestly don’t know.”

Cora looked up at the two of them. “Can I eat my pot stickers out here?” Stevie looked up at David as he just shrugged. “Uh… I guess?”

“Cool. Do you have a clean plate or should I just eat it out of the bag?”

Stevie laughed. “I think I like her.”

David growled and walked into the kitchen. He pulled a plate out of his cabinet, setting the food down on the counter. He was dumping the extra pot stickers on the plate when he heard yelling from the front of his house.

“CORA! CORA! CORA!” He moved out to the living room with the plate as he heard Stevie open the front door, talking to the man in his yard. By the time he got back out to the living room, there was a frantic stranger standing in his entry way, Stevie pointing toward the couch. 

“But Dad, David has cable and I was bored.”

“WHO THE HELL IS DAVID!?!”

“That’s me” David said. The man whipped around and locked eyes with David. For a moment, David was lost in the warmest brown eyes he had ever seen. It took his breath away for a second. David cleared his throat, moving into the living room, dropping the plate in front of Cora, turning toward the frantic man. 

“Who are you?” The man yelled at him.

“Dad. You’re being loud.”

“Cora, you can’t just walk into someone’s house!”

“I told her the same thing” David replied, drawing the man’s eyes back to him. David really wanted that. He could feel that in his bones. He wanted the other man’s attention. “From what I can surmise, she got nosy about who you were yelling at earlier and decided she liked my couch.”

The other man cocked an eyebrow at him. “Surmise? Big word for someone who has been out of bed for just under an hour.”

Stevie barked out a laugh from where she had sat down in one of the chairs. “I like him too.”

The stranger turned toward Stevie. She raised her hand in the air. “I’m Stevie Budd by the way. And that’s David Rose.”

The man looked back and forth between the two of them. “That’s funny. We stayed in a Rosebud motel chain last night on our way here.”

She nodded. “Yeah. That’s us. Well. Not him. Me and his Dad. David doesn’t do much of anything. Or really anything at all except…”

“STOP!” David yelled, raising his hand at her. The other man turned back to him. He cleared his throat, a slight smirk breaking out on his face. “I’m Patrick Brewer. And that’s Cora.”

“He knows, Dad!”

Patrick looked at his daughter. “Wait. Where did you get pot stickers?”

“David was ordering food and I asked from some.”

“Cora!” Patrick groaned, dropping his head into his hands. 

“It’s really fine” David choked out, realizing he hadn’t said much in the last few minutes. Patrick looked at him. “I can pay you back, David.”

Stevie laughed. “Yeah, the money isn’t a big deal to him. Really don’t worry about it, Patrick.”

David glared at her. “Why are you here?” She smiled at him, nodding. 

“Ok. Cora, we need to go.”

“DAD! Come on! There’s nothing to do over there and David has ALL the cable channels!”

“CORA! Now, please.” Patrick shot her a look and Cora groaned, turning off the TV and putting her shoes back on. David watched the interaction, wondering what it would have been like to have had a dad give a shit when he was her age. 

Patrick ushered her out the front door and David followed, not really sure why but felt like he needed to. Patrick turned back and suddenly David found himself closer than he had intended. 

Patrick gave him a slight smile. “I do apologize for her. Cora sometimes forgets about boundaries but she is mostly harmless.” David laughed. 

“It’s ok, Patrick. I mean, it was a little strange but it’s not like she will make this a regular thing…

“I’m warning you, I’ll be back again tomorrow.” Cora piped up from the front yard.

“Ooh. I’m really scared.” David shot back.

“OK you two. Cora, your bedroom is ready to be unpacked so…” he pointed toward the house. Cora waved at David. “See you tomorrow.” David just stared at her leaving.

“I’ll do my best to keep her in line” Patrick said. “But that girl is a free spirit. Like her mom.”

David cleared his throat, shaking his head. “I look forward to meeting her too.”

Patrick got a distant look on his face. “Oh. Yeah. She’s… um… she’s not here…”. A look of sadness passed over Patrick’s face. David decided not to push it any further but knew there was more to that story. 

“DAD!” They both whipped their heads over toward Cora’s voice from the driveway of their house. 

“I should go. Nice to meet you David.”

“You too, Patrick.” David watched him walk away until he entered the garage, yelling at Cora as he went. David shut the door and walked back inside, Stevie smiling at him from where she had sat down.

“What?” He asked, waving his arms around.

“Patrick. Pat. Rick.”

“Yes, Stevie. That’s his name.”

“He’s got you flustered.”

“No, he doesn’t. I’m not flustered! Maybe it’s the hangover.”

“Ok. Yeah. Sure David. Whatever. Now how about to give me what I came here for?”

David groaned, remember the massive apology he owed Stevie for the late night call.

* * *

David answered the knock on the door, wiping his face, trying to look presentable. 

“Hey, David, I need a…” Patrick trailed off, looking hard at David’s face. He glanced down at his daughter, who was also staring at David. “Can we come in?” Patrick asked. David just shrugged, walking away from the open door. Patrick and Cora followed him inside, shutting the door. 

David was wandering toward the back of the house, not looking back at them. Patrick pushed Cora toward the couch. “Go watch some TV. I’ll be right back.” Cora shrugged, dropping on the couch in what David and Patrick had dubbed ‘her spot’. Patrick quickly moved through the house, finding the backdoor open and David sitting on the bottom step, hugging his knees into his chest. Patrick dropped down next to him.

“Rough morning?” Patrick asked quietly. David just shrugged. “The exhibit was a disaster and my dad basically shuttered the gallery after it ended. Not that there was much to it, but still…”

“I’m sorry David.”

David just shrugged again, dropping his head down on his arms. Patrick rested his hand on David’s shoulder. 

“After Rachel died, I really struggled to get out of bed some mornings. Thank God my mom came over every day. There were days I didn’t see Cora. Which I can’t even imagine now, but back then… anyway. I found that when I got in those moods, I just needed to take a baby step or two. Getting out of bed. A shower. Just moving to the couch instead of laying in bed all day. Nothing huge. But it helped. And then it became a habit. Even now, it’s still hard. But I had to try. For Cora.”

“Patrick, I don’t have a Cora. I don’t have anything.”

Patrick opened his mouth when they both heard Cora running toward them. “Hey David. Can I have one of the juice pouches and some of the Funyuns?”

David just nodded. “Dear God, yes. I didn’t buy them for me.” 

Cora smiled brightly. “Sweet. Thanks David!” And she was gone just as quickly as she appeared. David sighed, looking at Patrick, who had wide eyes and his mouth hanging open. 

“You bought her snacks?”

“That child is hungry, like, all the damn time. It just seemed easier to have things here that I know she likes than to have her bitch at me for my lack of food.”

“I mean, feel free to get her some fruit too but… wow David. And you’re wrong by the way.”

“What? What am I wrong about?”

“You do have something. You have Cora, too.”

David stared out across the yard. A week after the Brewers had moved in, David had his landscaper cut a path between the yards because he was tired of Cora scaling the hedges. He started keeping food and drinks she liked because it really was easier than digging through his cabinets for things that would make her complain. His Netflix queue was starting to resemble that of a 10 year old girl instead of his. It didn’t even phase him anymore when he would come downstairs and find Cora on his couch. Patrick didn’t even freak out anymore when she wasn’t in their house - he would just come over to make sure she was there. Sometimes he would find them watching TV. Sometimes they would be sitting together reading. David was introducing her to his favorite artists and his favorite self care products. Patrick even had to admit her hair was not near as knotty once she started using the hair care products David painstakingly picked out one afternoon. 

“Maybe you’re right.”

“There’s no maybe about it David. In fact…” David glanced at Patrick as he trailed off, swallowing hard. “The truth is, David, aside from my parents, there aren’t a lot of people I trust with Cora. But you… I know she’s safe when she’s here. And that means…” Patrick got choked up as he trailed off. David nodded, resting his hand on Patrick’s knee, patting it lightly. Patrick shook his head, pushing the emotion away. 

“Thank you, Patrick. People rarely trust me to make dinner reservations and you are trusting me with a whole kid. That means… well… is there something more than a lot?”

Patrick laughed. “I mean it, David. So how about this - the crying in the morning thing, the depression. I say let’s get that fixed. So that you both are safe. I need to know you both are safe.” There was a look that crossed Patrick’s face. A look David had seen a few times but had done his best to brush off or ignore. Stevie saw it once and she had spent hours talking about it until he had kicked her out. 

When Patrick looked at him like that, David would agree to anything. “Ok, Patrick. I like the sound of that.”

With very little convincing, David went to take a nice long shower. He even shaved and did his hair and pulled out one of his designer outfits. He walked back downstairs, feeling better about himself than he had in awhile. The blow of the failed art exhibit that didn’t yield one sale coupled with his father basically ripping him a new one in front of his mother, his sister and Stevie had taken what little self confidence he had managed to find and blew it to smithereens. Who knew that a dad in mid-range denim with a precocious daughter would be the one to pull him out of the funk. 

David froze. His living room was clean - gone were the empty containers and bottles. The rings on the table had disappeared and even the pillows seemed fluffier. He slowly walked into the kitchen to find Patrick doing the dishes. Cora was cleaning the countertops. The garbage was empty. He was at a loss for words. 

“Take out the recycling, Cora.”

She looked at David, shaking her head slowly but with a smile on her face. “Do we need to review garbage versus recycling AGAIN?” She didn’t even give him a chance to respond before literally flouncing out the backdoor. Patrick turned off the water, turning around to face David, leaning against the counter, arms crossed.

“You fired the cleaning lady again, didn’t you?”

David suddenly became very interested in his cuticles. Maybe it was time for a manicure. “There’s a chance it wasn’t so much fired as she just stopped coming back because of…” and he motioned to himself. 

Patrick ducked his head and laughed. “Ok then.”

“You didn’t have to clean, Patrick.”

“I did, David. I remember about a month after Rachel died, my mom finally just busted into the house. I had managed to keep her out, right. Meeting them out, going to their place instead. But my mom… she just wasn’t having it. She just showed up one morning to find me sitting on the floor while Cora ate her weight in waffles. Not even homemade ones. Frozen. That she, at the ripe old age of 7, heated up herself in the microwave. I remember the TV was on, but no clue what we were watching. She literally forced me into a shower, called my dad and other reinforcements. They cleaned my house while my mom took Cora and went shopping. Then she made me promise I would never let it get that bad again.”

David just watched as Patrick turned back to the rest of the dishes. Patrick never really talked about Rachel except in passing like this. Never about what happened and when and why he moved three hours away from his parents with their only grandchild and why he never spoke about Rachel’s parents. David didn’t push. He figured it wasn’t really his business and if Patrick wanted to tell him, he would. 

Patrick finished drying the last dish and turned back to David. “Promise me. Don’t ever let it get this bad again.”

David nodded. “I promise” he said quietly. And he knew, because Patrick asked, that he would do his damn best to keep that promise.

Cora came back in. “DAD! The ice cream truck! IT’S HERE!!!” David could see it forming in Patrick’s head before the words could come out of his mouth. David quickly turned to Cora. “Go up to my room and grab my wallet. It’s on my dresser.” She was gone before he finished the sentence.

Patrick opened his mouth but David held up his hand, stopping him. “I want ice cream. You know you want some ice cream. My way of saying thank you. Please.”

Patrick cocked his head to the side, a soft smile forming on his face. “Ok David. Let’s get some ice cream. Who needs dinner?”

“Exactly.”

* * *

“What are you doing next Friday?”

“Well, hello to you too” Patrick said as David yelled at him across the hedge. He walked over, his smile widening as he approached David. That had been happening more and more, the more time he spent with David. His mother even picked up on something when they spoke a couple of days ago.

_ “Cora said that David took her to a gallery today.” _

_ “Oh. Yeah. I had a meeting and he offered to watch her for me and she ended up talking him into an outing.” _

_ “You both have been spending a lot of time with him.” _

_ “Well, he’s quite taken with Cora and he’s not really close with his family so…” _

_ “You sure Cora is the only one he is taken with?” Patrick stopped, staring at himself in the mirror above his dresser.  _

_ “Mom…” _

_ “Patrick. You know…” _

_ “I know Mom.” _

_ “I just… you have yourself convinced that Rachel…” _

_ “Mom, please. I can’t… I’m not ready to talk about that. Please.” He could feel the guilt and fear bubbling up inside of him. He wasn’t ready for it to bubble over. He wasn’t sure he would ever be.  _

_ “Ok. Ok. Just know it’s ok, Patrick. Please know that. Plus, from what Cora has told me, David sounds like quite a character. Maybe that’s what you need.” _

_ Just the thought of David maybe being what he needs brought a huge smile to his face. “Maybe, Mom. Maybe.” _

“What was the question, David?”

“What are you and Cora doing on Friday? You don’t have to work right?”

“Uh…”

“Oh My God, Patrick. It’s the Fourth of July!”

Patrick’s eyes went wide. He really had forgotten.

“You’re the worst.”

“Fine. I forgot. So obviously we aren’t doing anything Friday. Why?”

David cleared his throat. “Well… ok, it’s just… the Rosebud group is doing this big party. They do it every year but I never go but I thought that you and Cora might want to go with me… it’s just I normally spend the 4th drunk and high and I thought maybe that wasn’t the best idea this year but I cannot stomach the thought of showing up at the event alone. There’s going to be food and games and plenty of drinks, both adult and kid versions, and this huge fireworks show at the end of the night and…”

Patrick started to laugh, holding up his hand. He knew he could watch David word-vomit for hours but he needed to put the poor guy out of his misery. 

“Yes, David. We will go with you.” The brightness of David’s smile almost made his heart beat out of his chest. 

“Good. Good good good. Make sure you all pack bathing suits and changes of clothes and I’m sure you need lots of sunscreen cause…”. David snapped his lips shut as Patrick shot him a look.

“Not another word about our pale Brewer skin, please and thank you.”

“I know someone who makes the best sunscreen. I’ll get you some.”

“You know, David, you should maybe think about using all these contacts you know and doing something with them. Even I can admit that the stuff you gave me for Cora’s hair has made a big difference. She doesn’t try to punch me when I comb her hair after her shower anymore.”

David just stared at Patrick. “I couldn’t…”

“Oh, I bet you could. You would need some help, but I have no doubt that you could if you wanted to.”

“DAD!!!”

They both looked toward the house. 

“I should go” Patrick said half heartedly. 

“Friday” David said quietly.

“Yes. Friday.”

* * *

**JULY**

Patrick whistled. “Damn, David, you weren’t kidding.”

“Nope. When Moira Rose wants to make an impression, she makes an impression.”

Rides. Bouncy houses. Swimming in the lake. Paddle boats. Food trucks. Drink trucks. Ice cream and fried food. 

“And they do this every year?”

“Yeah. This is mom’s way of making herself feel American even though she was born and raised in Canada.”

“DAD!! DAVID!!! Let’s go! Why are you two walking so slow?” Cora was screaming at them from a few feet ahead. They quickly ran into Stevie and the four of them wandered around for most of the day. At one point David wanted drinks and Cora wanted to do a paddle boat so Patrick took off with Cora. By the time they got back to Stevie, David looked flushed and Stevie looked like the cat who had eaten the canary. 

The sun was starting to set and everyone was heading out to the grass for the fireworks show. The four of them quickly found a patch of grass to set up camp on. Once they were settled, Stevie suddenly popped up, grabbing Cora.

“Cora, I feel like we need some funnel cakes. Let’s go get funnel cakes.” They were off before Patrick could open his mouth. He looked at David, who was staring daggers at Stevie’s retreating form. 

Patrick cleared his throat, getting David’s attention. “You ok? You’ve been staring at Stevie like you would wish she would catch on fire for an hour now.”

David nodded, messing with his rings, not really meeting Patrick’s gaze. “Yeah. Fine. She’s just… kind of a bossy know it all and she just…” But then he looked at Patrick. For a moment, the rest of the world disappeared. It was just the two of them, looking at each other. For a second, Patrick’s gaze dipped to David’s lips before snapping back up to David’s eyes. David could see whatever Patrick was feeling wash across his face. David opened his mouth to say something, but the first firework went off, drawing their attention to the sky. It was a beautiful show. 

Patrick looked over at David. “Thanks for the invitation tonight, David. I’m glad we are here.” David looked over at Patrick, smiling, patting Patrick’s hand that was resting on the blanket between them. “Me too, Patrick. Me too.” And if Patrick noticed that David never moved his hand, he kept that to himself.

* * *

**AUGUST**

“DAVID!” 

He groaned as he rolled over, looking at the time. 708 am. 

“What the fuck…” he muttered to himself. He quickly grabbed his robe and glasses, trudging downstairs. There he found Cora, whipping through his living room, Patrick in the doorway, looking as frazzled as Cora was acting. 

“Where the fuck is my social studies homework?”

“CORA!” Patrick yelled. David sighed, moving into his kitchen, grabbing a stack of papers off the table. 

“Here. They are right here, Cora.”

“Thank Jesus!” She yelled, grabbing them out of his hands and running outside. 

“LANGUAGE!” Patrick yelled after her, following her out toward where the bus was coming to a stop. David slowly meandered out after them, yawning. He watched as Cora waved off her dad, running onto the bus. 

Patrick sighed as the bus pulled away, running his hand through his hair. He moved back toward David. “Sorry about the early morning wake up call. I’ve told her to stop leaving her work at your place but…”

“Yeah, it’s not great but at least she remembered this time. Not sure school was a fan of me trying to drop it off.”

“Yeah, I need to get you added to her approved guardian list.” David whipped his head around. “What? Me?”

Patrick shrugged at him. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I?”

“Like… I would have to like… be responsible for her or…”

“Breathe David. I don’t have to. It was just a thought, like if I ever needed someone to go pick her up from school or run her something up there like you had to do last week… but if it’s too much…”

“No. It’s not. I just… never really thought of myself as anyone would make an approved guardian list, that’s all.”

“Well, at this point, you can’t be doing much worse than me.”

“Patrick, are you ok?” 

“David, am I a bad father?”

David laughed. “No. No, you're not a bad father. You're just a fucking lunatic.”

“That’s not helpful.”

“She’s a lunatic. I’m a lunatic. The whole world is crazy, Patrick. You just do the best you can to get through the day.”

Patrick just nodded, staring out across the street, not really looking at anything.

“You can put me on the list, if you want.”

“Thanks, David.”

* * *

David was flipping channels when Cora walked in. David had heard the bus pull off. Usually she would appear after a snack with some of her homework. Rarely did she come right in off the bus. 

Cora flopped down on the couch next to David. 

He looked at her as she just stared at the television. 

David cleared his throat, sitting up a little straighter. “So, how was school today? Did you get your science assignment turned in? Did Mrs…”

“David, I know you seem to think you have to ask me serious questions when I know all you really want to do is watch The Great British Bake-off, so we can really just do that.”

This kid… how at her age did she just get him sometimes. He was in awe of her on a daily basis. He never in his life thought he would connect to any kid. Yet here she was, taking up a spot in his life that he didn’t realize was a hole till she wandered into his house that day. So, they sat there in silence, watching cakes and cookies and cupcakes being made and judged over and over again. 

Cora’s phone went off and she looked at it, sighing. “I have to go home.” She pulled herself off the couch, grabbing her bag.

“Oh shit. We should have done some of your homework instead of watching TV all afternoon.”

“It’s fine. I’ll get it done.”

“I know you will. I should have adulted better today.”

“You adulted fine, David. You are adulting better than my dad at the moment, so…”

David sat straight up. “Is he ok?”

“He’s been in a mood for a few days. He tends to get like this about this time of year, but it is earlier than I’m used to.”

“Why?”

“My mom died two years ago next month. He gets in his head about it leading up to the day. At least that’s what Nana says.” Nana, he knew, was Patrick’s mom. 

David looked up at this little girl, who should be worrying about friends and birthdays, not her father’s grief and his spiral. “You’ve had to grow up a lot over the last few years, haven’t you, Cora?”

She just sighed. “Yeah. I have it. And it kind of sucks.”

“I bet it does.”

Her phone went off again. “I have to go. He’s freaking out. Bye David.” David walked over the window, watching her walk across the yard to her house and he realized something. Two people isn't enough. You need backup. If you're only two people, and someone drops off the edge, then you're on your own. Two isn't a large enough number. You need three at least.

  
  


* * *

**SEPTEMBER**

David’s phone buzzed. Over the last few weeks, he had become used to the early morning wake up calls coming from next door. 

_ Cora: help… _

David quickly grabbed his slippers and a sweatshirt off the chair in his room, heading next door. Cora must have been waiting for him cause she opened the door as he walked up the steps.

“Oh my God…” he muttered, staring at her hair.

“Help me” she wailed. He turned her around, looking at the knots in her hair. 

“Cora, you have GOT to make sure you get the back!”

“I know, David, but my dad…” David patted her shoulder. 

“I know. OK. Go get the spray and the comb that I got you. I can fix this.” Cora tore up the stairs to her bathroom as David dropped down on the couch. It had been a strange few weeks with Patrick and David didn’t know what to do. He was in a cycle of… something David couldn’t quite put his finger on. He had come over for dinner last week. The three of them had laughed and relaxed and Patrick had flirted with him mercilessly. David thought for a moment Patrick was going to kiss him, but he didn’t. But since then, it has been silent. David hadn’t seen Patrick other than in passing over the last few days. 

Cora presented him with what he had asked for and he quickly fixed her hair, securing it in a ponytail.

“Where’s your dad?”

Cora sighed. “Asleep. I’m not sure what time he finally went to sleep but I don’t think it was too long ago.”

“Have you eaten?” She just shook her head. 

David pushed himself off the couch. “Come on. I have donuts. Your dad will kill me but…”

Cora rolled her eyes. “Tough. He doesn’t get an opinion if he can’t be bothered to get out of bed.”

“I’m sorry, Cora.”

“You didn’t do it, David. But the bus will be here in 20 minutes, so…” David walked her over to his house, getting her fed and on the bus, making sure she had everything she needed for the day. They heard the bus coming down the street when Cora looked up at David.

“Can I come over after school?”

“You know you don’t have to ask, Cora. Of course you can. I’ll just let your dad know and…”

She waved him off. “I’ll tell him. Thanks David.” With that, she skipped off to the bus. 

David spent the school hours doing things he never would have done before Cora Brewer. He cleaned. He went to the grocery store to get food, including fruit and non-sugary drinks for Cora. He spent some time jotting down some thoughts, something he had been thinking about since Patrick had made a comment in passing. He even pulled out some decent clothes to put on and he felt pretty damn good by the time she got off the bus. 

He loved that she just walked right in. He was going to need to deal with his growing affection for both the Brewers at some point, he knew that. David was in the kitchen, cutting up fruit in a bowl when Cora dropped down at the table. He put a small bowl in front of her with some milk. She just looked at him. 

“What is this?”

“A snack.”

“Where are the Cheetos?”

“We need to eat better snacks. Your dad said that…”

“Ignore my dad. I’m choosing to.”

David looked at her. “Everything ok?”

Cora shrugged. “Yeah, sure. Peachy.” She grabbed a grape out of her bowl, pulling her folder out of her bag. She quickly dove into her homework and David opened his journal, working through some thoughts.

Soon, Cora closed her folder, looking at David chewing on his pencil. “What is that?” She asked, stretching up to see the page he had open. 

David shut the journal, shrugging. “Just an idea. It’s probably nothing.” 

“For nothing, David, you sure have spent a lot of time thinking about it.” David glanced at the clock on the wall, eyes wide. 

“Hell, Cora, you probably need to get home.”

“Nah. Let’s order food.”

David narrowed his eyes at her. “What’s going on? Why are you avoiding going home? Is your dad ok?”

Cora opened her mouth to start talking, but stopped when she heard a car door slam and a very loud “CORA” get bellowed from out front. 

“Shit” she muttered to herself. David looked at her. He couldn’t move before his front door was thrown open. David got up out of his chair, turning around to see Patrick blow into the kitchen, looking like hell. It was clear he hadn’t shaved in quite a few days, probably just as long since a shower. He looked exhausted and upset and…

“CORA!” He screamed at her, laying eyes on her as she sat in David’s kitchen. “What the hell, Cora? Do you know I’ve been all over town looking for you?!?” David whipped back to Cora, watching her eyes drop to the table. 

“You didn’t tell him you were here? Jesus, Cora…”

“And why the hell didn’t you tell me she was here, David!”

David turned to see the wild, unstable look in Patrick’s eyes. It was a look he hadn’t seen before. He made him a little nervous.

“I’m sorry, Patrick. She told me this morning that she would tell you she was coming over here after school…”

“What do you mean, this morning?”

David swallowed. “Ummmm… she texted me for help with her hair and then I gave her a donut before the bus and…”

“I have TOLD you to stop feeding my kid garbage!”

David took a step back. “Look, Patrick… I gave her fruit and milk this afternoon and…”

“And what, cause you give her ONE decent snack you think you get to make decisions and just…”

“STOP IT DAD!”

David held up his hands, trying to calm them all down. “Look, Patrick…” But Patrick wasn’t paying attention to him.

“Stop going to strangers for help, Cora. Next time you come wake me up. I’m sorry I slept through the alarm but…”

“What alarm? You turned your alarm off three weeks ago! And stranger… It’s David, DAD!”

Patrick clenched his jaw. “We barely know him!”

“I AM STANDING RIGHT HERE!” David yelled, finally losing his cool. Patrick turned, glaring at him. 

“Go home, Cora.”

“Dad!”

“Right. Now.” Patrick turned the glare on Cora, who sighed loudly, shoving her stuff in her bag aggressively. She threw her backpack over her shoulder, getting up out of the chair she had been sitting in. She stopped in front of David. “I’m sorry my dad is being an ass, David.”

“Get out of here right now, Cora. RIGHT NOW!” David watched her stomp out, not giving her dad a second look. David and Patrick both watched her go, both finally breathing when they heard the Brewer’s front door slam. 

“What the fuck, David?” Patrick spit out, turning toward David.

“Excuse me!”

“You think you can just bring her here whenever you want. She’s not your kid!” Patrick might as well have slapped him in the face with that phrase. David took another step away from Patrick, wrapping his arms around himself. 

“I know she’s not my kid, Patrick, but she asked me for help and I trusted her when she said she would tell you she was coming here after school. I’m sorry if you got worried and I should have let you know too. I won’t make that mistake again, I promise.”

“No. I won’t make that mistake again, David. She’s not allowed here anymore.”

David’s eyes went wide. “Patrick… you don’t mean that. I’m not sure what’s going on but if you need some help with something… I mean, I know I’m not the greatest when it comes to help but I would like to…”

Patrick laughed, rolling his eyes. “You're right. You can't help me. How could you? You're a stupid person who watches TV all day and buys things. You don't give a shit about anybody, and nobody gives a shit about you!”

“Get. Out.” David spit at Patrick.

“Gladly.” And with that, Patrick turned on his heel, walking out of David’s house. David was unsure how long he stood still in his kitchen, staring at the spot Patrick had been standing in. Finally, David moved around, closing the front door. He swallowed the dread and hurt that was building in his throat and stomach. He walked into the kitchen, tossing the fruit and dumping the milk down the drain. He looked around, before opening a cabinet, doing something he realized he hadn’t done in several weeks - he pulled out the whiskey and a glass, pouring it into the glass and downing it in one drink. 

“Fuck you, Patrick Brewer” he whispered to himself, pouring another glass.

* * *

David tumbled out of the Uber, glaring at the rising sun through his glasses. He dug his keys out of his pocket, walking up his steps when he stopped short, seeing Cora Brewer sitting there. 

“Hi” she said quietly. 

“Glad you’re alive” he said, walking past her. It had been over a week since the last time Cora had been in his house. When Patrick had reminded him of his place. 

“David…”

“Go home, Cora. Your dad made it clear that you are not allowed here anymore.”

“David. Please. My dad…”

“I need to go to bed” David said, opening his front door. He glanced over his shoulder to see Cora staring at him. Part of his brain was screaming at him to give her a hug and figure out what had happened. But the destructive part of his brain won out. Like it always did. David nodded. “The bus is here. Go to school, Cora.” Before she could respond, he shut the door. He stumbled upstairs into his bathroom, turning on the shower. He didn’t even know where he was when he woke up this morning. He was grateful he still had his wallet and phone. He stripped off his clothes, contemplating burning them before dropping them in the hamper. He stared at himself in the mirror as it started to fog up.

“I'm a fucking island! I'm fucking Ibiza!” David said to himself.

* * *

“Cora?”

Cora looked up at her teacher. Her teacher nodded at the paper on her desk, noticing she hadn’t even put her name on it. 

“You should probably get started on the quiz before you run out of time.” Cora pressed her lips together, nodding, feeling the tears welling up in her eyes. Her teacher noticed and she crouched down next to her desk. 

“How about this? How about you go to the counselor now and you can do this during recess later.” Cora nodded, grabbing her bag off the floor and fleeing the classroom. By the time she got to the counselor’s office, the tears were streaming down her face. The school counselor let her cry on her couch, patting her on the shoulder, not trying to get her to talk, which Cora was grateful for. She wouldn’t even know where to start. Eventually the tears subsided and Cora looked up at the counselor. 

“You want me to call your dad, Cora?”

Cora laughed. “Oh God no. Please don’t.” The counselor just looked at her. 

“Umm… actually… my phone is in my bag… could I call my Nana?”

The counselor nodded. “I’ll give you a couple of minutes, but then I need you to tell me why you got so upset, okay?” Cora agreed and the counselor exited her office, closing the door behind her.

Marcy Brewer was putting the last of her groceries in the car when she heard her phone ring from her purse in the front seat. She pulled it out, looking at the ID and seeing what time it was. 

“Cora?” Marcy said, answering the phone quickly. “What’s wrong? You should be in class.”

“I know, Nana. But… it’s just…”

“Your dad?”

Cora started to sniffle again. “I think you need to come.” Marcy quickly started the car, pulling out of her spot. 

“Let me call your Pops when I get home. We will be there as soon as we can.”

“Thanks, Nana. I have to go. I got upset in class and the counselor wants to talk before I can go back.”

“Cora… tell her the truth.”

“But Dad…”

“Your dad needs to deal with all of this. I’ve let him get away with acting like this for too long. I’m sorry for that, Cora. I’m going to fix this. Anything else I need to know?”

“He banned me from David’s. And I think he was really mean to David about it all too. Also, I think he might have talked to grandma last night.” Marcy sighed. He knew Rachel’s mom meant well, but… 

“We’re coming, Cora. Ask if you can keep your phone on you. I’ll text you when we leave.”

“Thanks, Nana.” Marcy hung up the phone, pulling out of the parking lot. “Oh Patrick…” she whispered to herself. 

* * *

**OCTOBER**

Fall had blown in with a vengeance, which David was glad for. Cold mornings and brisk evenings and the build up to Halloween gave him distractions to keep from thinking about the people next door he was doing his best to forget about. He had seen someone arrive a few weeks ago, a lovely looking woman and an older man that was the spitting image of Patrick Brewer. He figured it was his parents, but David was also drunk a lot of the time so there was a chance he had imagined them. 

David stumbled down the stairs, hoping there was coffee left. He turned the corner into the kitchen and yelped, finding Stevie sitting at his table, his journal open in front of her. 

“How dare you break into my house first thing in the morning, witch!?!” 

Stevie didn’t even look up. “It’s quarter to 1 in the afternoon, David. And I used my key.”

“How the fuck did you get a key?”

“Your dad gave it to me.”

“Why the hell did he do that?” She finally looked up at him. “Cause I guess after your performance at the family dinner Sunday night, the three of them are worried about you. Not sure why, with your sparkling personality and excellent people skills working for you these days.” He watched her look back down to the journal and flip the page. He realized what she was looking at and stomped over, yanking it away from her, dropping it with force on the kitchen counter.

“What is that, David?”

“Nothing. A stupid idea I couldn’t possibly ever pull off.”

“Why not? Seems you have thought about it a lot.”

“How about we talk about you and my family conspiring against me?”

“Is this fun for you?” Stevie asked, motioning at him with her hands. “I thought you had finally gotten over acting like this, that Patrick and Cora…”

“Do NOT bring them up.” David walked over to the coffee pot, pulling a full can of his favorite gourmet coffee out of the cabinet. He looked at it, confused.

“Alexis gave that to me yesterday, figured you might need some.” David stared at the canister, his favorite coffee supplied to him by his little sister, even though he had been so awful to her on Sunday night… it was too much. He dropped the canister, resting his hands on the counter, head dropped down, and he started to cry. Stevie finally got him out of the kitchen and onto the couch, wrapping her arms around him, pulling him in, letting him cry it out. 

After what seemed like an eternity, he finally calmed himself. 

“It’s not, by the way.” He finally choked out.

“What?” She asked quietly.

“This. It’s not fun for me. I’m pretty fucking miserable.”

“We’ve noticed.”

“I think I need some help.”

“Yeah, we’ve noticed that too. It’s part of the reason I’m here. Me and Alexis and your parents have talked.” With that, Stevie sat him up, telling him about what they had all talked about last night and what they wanted to do, if he was willing. He knew he couldn’t live like this anymore. Soon, he agreed. Stevie helped him pack up what he would need to go stay with his parents out at their house on the lake for a few weeks. He agreed - he needed to get out of his head and get some new perspective. Alexis was going to go stay as well so she could be there, to help, to spend some time with her brother who needed someone to have his back. 

After an hour, they were putting David’s bags in Stevie’s car. “Hold on” he said, jogging back into the house. He grabbed his journal off the counter and headed back out to Stevie’s car. She smiled at him as he got in the car, placing the journal down in his bag.

“So, why don’t you tell me about those sketches as we drive.”

“I’m going to need several bags of snacks before I can do that.”

“God, David. You think I’ve never taken a road trip with you before.” And for the first time in awhile, he laughed. 

* * *

Patrick swallowed the large lump in his throat as he watched David pack bags into a car and drive away. 

“Sweetheart?” He turned to see his mom standing there, sipping her tea. 

“He left” Patrick said quietly, turning on his heel and walking away from the window. Marcy sighed. 

* * *

**NOVEMBER**

“Ew, David!” Alexis yelled as she walked through David’s front door. Stevie rolled her eyes at the Rose siblings as they bickered back and forth, much like they had been doing over the last three weeks. It had been a very long time since the four Roses had lived under one roof together. Even though they screamed and yelled at each other, they also loved on each other in a very Rose way and David was getting back to himself day by day. So when he said he was ready to go home on Halloween, Stevie and Alexis didn’t put up a fight. They had promised each other that they would allow David to tell them when he was ready to get back to life. 

Sure, the first few days he slept and moped around the large lake house. But then, he started walking through the woods (he rolled his eyes the first time Stevie accused him of hiking). He bundled up one afternoon and took out the kayak and had found he really enjoyed that. He hadn’t had a drink since Stevie had pulled him out of his house and Alexis made sure Johnny tipped double for the cleaners dumping any and all alcohol they found at David’s before he came back. 

And David had brainstormed. He let Alexis in on what he had spent weeks doodling in his journal. 

_ Alexis flipped through the page, eyes wide, really impressed that her brother had been thinking about all of this. _

_ “Where did you even come up with the idea for this, David?” _

_ David looked out the window, staring at the lake. “Someone once mentioned that I knew a lot of people who sell unique things and I should think about doing something with all that.” _

_ “Someone, huh?” Alexis said, looking at her brother. She remembered Patrick Brewer from the 4th of July party. The way he had stared at David all night, the way David had doted on his daughter, all of it. But since he had gotten here, Patrick’s name hadn’t come up at all. She tried once and David shut her down with one look.  _

Alexis dropped onto the couch. “So, David…”

“What?!?” He said, dragging in the last of his bags. “Oh, and thanks for all the help.”

“Oh my God, David, I just got this manicure done yesterday. Do you want me to chip the polish already?”

“I want you to choke on your polish, Alexis.”

“OK!” Stevie yelled. They all sat down in David’s living room, taking a moment to decompress from the car ride back from the lake. 

“Anyway, David, I was going to ask if you want any help putting your proposal together.” Alexis said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. 

“No. I really want to try to on my own.”

“I still don’t understand why you didn’t just ask dad for the money. This feels like a lot of trouble for you.”

“Eat glass, Alexis. I told you both, I want to do this right. I don’t want dad to give me money, I want him to decide this is a solid investment.”

“You know if this happens, you will need someone to take care of the business side of things, right?” He glared at Stevie.

“One thing at a time, please. I need to get this whole thing written before Monday. You sure I’m on his schedule?”

Stevie nodded. “I called Donna at our last pit stop to make sure. You are his 10:30. She even said she would send you the official email this afternoon.”

“And you will be there? You promised you would…”

Stevie held her hand up. “Yes, David, I will be around.” She glanced at her watch. “I have to go. I’ll see you Monday. Alexis, you need a ride?”

She shook her head. “No, I’ll grab an Uber or something later.” Stevie quickly made her exit and David slid his eyes over to his sister.

“I don’t need a babysitter.”

“I know, David. Maybe I’m just not ready to leave yet.”

“Fine. I need a shower. Order some food.” Alexis tapped away on her phone, ordering a smattering of noodles from their favorite place as she heard the water turn on over her head. She scrolled Instagram and Twitter while he showered, checking the delivery as she heard the water turn off. There was a knock at the door, a very insistent one. She knew it wasn’t the food, so Alexis pushed herself off the couch, opening the door to a child.

“Is David back?” The child was practically vibrating as she stood there, bouncing on her toes. 

“I know you” Alexis said. “You’re…”

“Cora?” She heard David say from behind her on the steps. Cora bolted around Alexis, throwing herself at David. David caught her, dropping down to sit on the steps. The two of them held on to each other tightly. Alexis leaned against the door, taking in the sight of her brother happily embracing a child. 

“You were gone for a long time” Cora whispered in David’s ear.

“I know. I needed… I just needed a change of scenery.”

“I was worried you weren’t coming back.”

David pulled out of the hug, looking Cora in the eyes. “Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was at first.”

“It doesn't matter. You came back. Now you can talk my dad out of leaving.”

“What?”

“He says we’re moving again. I don’t want to, David. You have to talk him out of it.”

It felt like someone had punched him in the stomach. Patrick and Cora were leaving.

“Cora, your dad and I haven’t spoken in weeks. And if he thinks you all need to leave, he’s probably just doing what he thinks is best for you and…”

“NO! I don’t want to go! Please David!”

“Cora?” They all turned at the voice coming from the open door Alexis was still standing by. The couple David had seen all those weeks ago. “Honey, you can’t just take off like that.”

“Nana, I know, but I was hoping that David would talk Dad out of leaving.”

The older man held out his hand. “Cora, come on. Let’s go back next door.”

She turned back to David. “Please, David.” And with that, she peeled herself away from David, taking the older man’s hand and walking back next door. The woman stayed for a moment, watching them walk away. She turned back as David approached the door, standing next to Alexis. 

“She’s done nothing but talk about you since you left, David. And since she’s not currently speaking to her dad, that’s about all she will talk about.” She held out her hand. “I’m Marcy Brewer and that was my husband, Clint.”

David shook it, smiling at her. “David Rose. My sister Alexis. Have you all been here this whole time?”

Marcy nodded. “I have. My husband has gone back and forth for work but…” she shook her head. “Look, I have dinner in the oven and Cora needs to finish her homework. Come over for lunch tomorrow, David. Clint and I would like to talk to you, if you are free.”

David’s eyes went wide. “Oh, I’m not sure Patrick would…”

“He’s not here. It’s… well, it is kind of a long story that I feel like you need to know. Come over for lunch tomorrow, please?”

David just nodded. Patrick had Marcy’s kind eyes - made it hard to say no to anything. 

“Good. See you about 11:30.” David and Alexis watched her go. Alexis shut the door, watching David walk back into the living room. 

“David.”

He looked up at her as he dropped onto the couch. 

“David, do you have feelings for Patrick?” She had suspected since July. Her and Stevie had been waiting for something to happen between the two men. But then, the fight happened and David pulled away from anything he might have been feeling.

David stared at his sister. She knew when to back off and she knew when to call him on the carpet. Trying to lie to her had never worked out well for him. Not once.

He nodded. “I wanna be with him, I wanna be with him all the time, and I wanna tell him things I don't even tell you or Stevie. And I don't want him to leave. Even though we haven’t spoken in weeks, the thought of him and Cora not being next door… I just assumed we would make up, we would find a way to fix whatever happened. And I swear to God, I still don’t know what happened.”

“Go to lunch tomorrow, David. Don’t blow off his parents. I know you and I know you are thinking about flaking on them. Don’t. See if you can figure out how to fix this.”

* * *

David straightened his sweater as he knocked on the door. Patrick’s dad answered the door, smiling at him the same way Patrick used to smile at him. 

“David Rose, it is nice to finally meet you. Clint Brewer.” He held out his hand and David shook it. Clint ushered him in, closing the door behind David. David looked around.

“I feel like I’m intruding” he said, not really knowing where to look. 

“Come on. Marcy is in the kitchen.” Soon, they were seated around the table, eating lunch and having small talk. 

“Cora begged me to let her stay home today so she could have lunch with you too.” Marcy said, clearing the dishes off the table. “She misses you” Marcy said as she sat back down.

That hit David hard. He swallowed the lump in his throat, staring at the rings on his fingers. “She’s a sweet kid.” He was able to choke that out, barely. Marcy patted his hands and he looked up at her.

“David, we actually need your help.”

“With what?”

“Patrick wants to move. We think that’s a bad idea. We think he needs to stay here. And we think you are just the person to convince him of that.”

David shook his head back and forth, very dramatically. “Oh. Oh no. Mrs Brewer…”

“Marcy.”

“Um… ok… sure… but no. He’s not… we’re not… I thought Cora would have told you…”

“Oh. No. She did. In detail. About how her dad is an ass. Actually, she’s been referring to him as our son and not her dad. She’s pretty mad at him.” Clint just smiled at David. 

David’s eyes went wide at that information. “Oh, I never meant to cause…”

“David. You sweet boy. You didn’t. That’s what we want to talk to you about.”

“I’m very confused.”

“I’m sure. Let’s start here. How much has Patrick told you about Rachel?”

“Almost nothing. He mentions her in passing at times but…”

Marcy just nodded, looking at Clint. “Your son is a stubborn ass, Clint Brewer.”

“Oh. Sure. Lead in the play? Your son. Stubborn ass? My son.”

“Stubborn is a Brewer family trait.”

David couldn’t help but smile as the Brewers bantered back and forth. He caught a glimpse of Patrick’s quick wit and caring heart as they went back and forth with each other in that moment. They both turned back to David after a look passed between them. 

Marcy sighed. “Ok, David. So Patrick has a habit of running when life gets hard. He did it as a kid when he struggled with school work. There was the one time he didn’t get the position he wanted on the travel baseball team. And he did it a lot with Rachel. Every time they broke up, which was a lot, he ran. Sometimes he would just literally go for a run. Other times he would take off for a day or two. The last time, before he proposed and they eloped, he was gone for 5 days. He always said it helped him get out of his head. We always thought he would grow out of it, that it was just a phase. But we think it’s more than that. Have since Rachel died. At first he retreated into himself. That got scary and dark for the first few months after she died. Then he got back into running, which we thought was good for him. Until he started using it as an excuse to sign up for any race he could find, to get out of town for a weekend. We let it go on. Probably for too long. Then he ran here. It was hard for him back home, being around everyone giving him pity looks and just the general sadness that people brought up to him. He literally picked a place on the map and was here a week later. We were worried about it. But then… well, then David, they both started talking about you. Suddenly Patrick sounded like himself again. We went from worried to glad. We had hoped that the second anniversary of losing Rachel wouldn’t be as bad as the first was. And it was bad. But then Cora called and the worry started again. It’s why I’ve been here for so long. I let him push me out too soon in the past. So Clint and I agreed this time, we would only step back if we felt like everything was on course again. But then he started talking about moving… again…”

The confusion David felt was written across his face. “I don’t understand what I can do to help.”

“David, he wants to run because of how he feels about you.” That statement settled in David’s stomach like a brick. It knocked the breath out of him for a moment. 

“Patrick hates me” he whispered.

Clint leaned in, resting his elbows on the table. “He doesn’t, David. It is the exact opposite. We know our son. We know when he is in deep. And he is in deep with you. It’s why he wants to run.”

“I don’t understand” David replied, tears building up in his eyes. “He’s so mad at me.”

“He’s not. He’s taking it out on you because he’s afraid of betraying Rachel.”

“I don’t understand.” David said again.

Marcy motioned at Clint. “You have to tell him.”

“I was really hoping Patrick would.”

“You know he won’t, Clint. But we need David to help. Tell him.”

“Tell me what?”

Clint nodded at his wife. “What I’m about to tell you, I told Patrick for the first time earlier this week. Right before he ran again. I finally made him listen to my story. David, I was the last person to talk to Rachel before she died.”

_ The ring of the phone took him by surprise. Not that it was super late, but it was later than most people called them. Marcy had gone to bed early, but he couldn’t sleep, so he flipped channels until he landed on some repeat of some criminal show that had been on for a thousand years.  _

_ Patrick made fun of him for still having a home phone number, but it was one of those relics he couldn’t quite part with. He grabbed the phone, glancing at the caller ID before answering.  _

_ “Rachel, everything ok?” _

_ “Everyone is fine, I guess. Did I wake you, Clint?” _

_ “No. Couldn’t quite get the mind to slow down yet so I’ve got the TV on.” _

_ “Yeah. I am sitting in my car eating ice cream.” _

_ “Rachel? What happened? Did Patrick run again?” _

_ “No. Not this time. I physically wouldn’t let him. I hid his keys and his running shoes.” _

_ “Smart.” _

_ Clint sat there listening to Rachel breathe. “What happened?” _

_ “I finally got him to say it.” _

_ Clint sat straight up in his chair. For the last couple of years, they could all tell Patrick had been struggling. He wasn’t himself. He was guarded and jumpy and on edge all the time.  _

_ “What is it?” _

_ “It isn’t what you expect, Clint, that’s for damn sure. I feel bad even telling you. I should really let Patrick. I just have no idea when he will.” _

_ “So, he didn’t cheat on you?” _

_ Rachel barked out a laugh. “Oh Lord no. Not at all.” _

_ “Rachel, please tell me. I won’t say anything. I’ll let him tell us. I promise. You have my word. I just need to know what is going on with my son.” _

_ “He’s gay.” She breathed it out so quietly he almost missed it. _

_ “Can you repeat that?” _

_ “You heard me, Clint.” _

_ He leaned back in his chair, and then, he started to laugh. Rachel quickly joined in and the two of them spent several minutes laughing until they were crying. _

_ “Well, if that’s all…” Clint said as he finally calmed down. That set Rachel off again.  _

_ She finally slowed down. “Yeah. He said it in the heat of the moment and he tried to walk it back. But I wouldn’t let him. That was the most honest he had been in months, Clint, in that moment. And once we were done, I told him that I got to take off for a bit tonight and he had to stay home with Cora. So I went and got a large ice cream cone and I’m sitting at the back of the parking lot eating it.” _

_ “Rachel, I promise, I won’t say anything.” _

_ “I told him that he needs to tell you two. When I get back, I’m going to talk to him about what it looks like moving forward.” _

_ “Rachel, I don’t want you to worry. If you two need anything…” _

_ “Clint, he’s still my best friend. We have a daughter. We both deserve to be 100% happy. I want that for him. I want him to live his life to the fullest. We just need to make sure he does.” _

_ “Agreed.” _

_ She sighed. “Ok. I think I’m going to head home. See if we can figure anything out before we collapse in exhaustion. Thanks for picking up, Clint.” _

_ “Always, Rachel.” _

Clint shrugged. “I went to bed after we hung up. Quickest I had fallen asleep in years, that night. Maybe it was the relief of knowing what was going on with Patrick. The next thing I knew, there was a banging at the door. It was like after midnight or something. Patrick looked frantic, holding a half asleep Cora. He passed her off to us and said Rachel had been in an accident and he needed to get to the hospital. We got Cora back to sleep and waited up. He finally called as the sun started to rise, hysterical. A drunk driver had blown through a stop sign and hit her on the driver side. They tried but…”. Clint trailed off and David could see how hard this was for him to talk about. 

“He spent years thinking she died hating him” Marcy said, filling in for Clint, who was overcome in the moment. 

David wiped the tears off his face. “When did he finally tell you.”

“Right before he moved here. Said between Rachel’s death and coming out, he needed a fresh start.”

David nodded. “You said you just told him all this…”

“Three days ago” Clint replied, finally getting his voice back. “I had just gotten back here and he was frantically trying to figure out if he could get their house back and how quickly he could get Cora back into school. I couldn’t let him run again, David. Not when he was finally finding himself. So I sat him down and I told him everything I just told you. He didn’t speak for a few hours and then he said he needed to go and asked us to stay with Cora.”

“Where did he go? Do you know?”

Marcy nodded. “He went to see Rachel’s parents and to visit her grave. I think he’s trying to get some closure. They actually called us when he got there. I guess he passed out in their guest room and slept for like 12 straight hours. We spent a good while talking to them and filling them in. They said they would do their best to get him to drop the idea of moving again.”

“Any idea if they were successful?” David asked. Marcy opened her mouth when they heard the front door open.

“Mom, Dad?” David froze, staring at Marcy. He wanted to bolt. She held her hand up, pleading with him to stay with her gaze. 

“In the kitchen, Patrick.” 

David stared at the table like he was staring a hole through it. He heard Patrick come into the kitchen and could see him stop in his tracks out of the corner of his eye. 

“David” he said quietly and David was moving, out of his seat and out the back door. He didn’t even say goodbye. 

Patrick watched David flee across the yard and around the hedge that separated their homes. He turned to his parents. 

Marcy crossed her arms as she stood up, squaring her shoulders. “Before you say a word, we invited him over for lunch because we needed another ally. We figured if anyone could talk you out of moving, it would be David. Patrick, we cannot…”

“I’m not moving, mom. We are staying here.”

“Oh thank God” she said, falling back into her seat. Patrick sat down in the seat David had vacated.

“Rachel’s parents were great. We talked, we cried… I… I talked a lot about David…” he said as he stared at the table. “They are happy that I met someone. Not that it matters. He can’t even be in the same room with me. Not that I blame him. Cora is right, I’ve been an ass. Especially to him.”

“Then we fix it” the three of them heard from the entry of the kitchen. They turned to see Cora standing there with her backpack in hand. “We aren’t moving?” She asked her father.

“We aren’t moving.”

“And you want to make up with David? Cause I like him better than you right now so don’t ask me to pick sides.”

“I would never. And yes, I want to make up with David.”

Cora sat down in the last chair at the table. “Good. Then let’s fix this. ASAP. I miss Funyuns.”

* * *

Patrick bounced his leg up and down as he sat in the chair, staring out the window, waiting. He had been in this small office for 15 minutes just waiting. 

“Good morning Patrick.” Patrick stared over his shoulder, confused. 

“Stevie?” He just stared at her as she sat down across the desk from him. He looked around for a moment. “Wait. Are you doing my interview?”

She cleared her throat, laying down a small stack of papers she carried in in front of her on the desk. “No, I’m not. I wanted to talk to you first.” Patrick opened his mouth, but she held up her hand to stop him. “Look, Patrick. No lie. The Rose Group would love to have you here. For real. We would be lucky to have you and if you want the job, it is probably yours. That’s how much I know you are going to impress Ray and Jocelyn. I mean, Ray is chatty and does a lot around here and Jocelyn seems a little flighty since the baby, but they really are great employees. I know them and knowing what I know about you, they will want to hire you on the spot.”

“Well, good then. Right? I mean, that’s a good thing, isn’t it, Stevie?”

“It is. If you want this job. Which I don’t think you do.”

“Of course I do.”

“You won’t get David’s attention working here.”

Patrick sighed, leaning back in his chair. David. It had been three weeks since the trip to see Rachel’s parents, since his parents had told him about the last night Rachel was alive. He had a lot to fix. He knew that. He had started with himself. And he was desperate to fix everything with David. He missed David. Cora missed David. And he had tried, but David had barely been around since he got back. Leaving early in the morning, back late at night, seemingly going right to bed when he would get home. Once. Patrick managed to catch him once on his way out one morning. 

_ “David!” He tried not to sound desperate, but he really was. David looked up from his car, blanching at Patrick.  _

_ “Good morning, Patrick. I’m just…” _

_ “You’ve been busy. Barely been around. Cora has come over a few times and she said you haven’t been home.” _

_ David looked around, basically looking anywhere but at Patrick. “Oh… yeah… I’ve got this thing that I’m working on and… it’s been busy… tell her I’m sorry and…” _

_ “Come for dinner tonight and tell her yourself.” That stopped David cold. He turned to Patrick, finally meeting his gaze. It killed Patrick. David was trying to protect himself. He could see it written all over his face. Patrick did this. Patrick wanted to fix it. He just needed an opening. Hopefully… _

_ “I’m sorry, Patrick, I just can’t. I’ve got a long day and… well…” _

_ “We miss you, David.” Patrick could barely get the words out. David turned away from him, pulling his keys out of his pocket. He walked around the car, opening the door. He paused, staring at the roof of his car. “I miss you all too.” And with that he quickly got in his car and drove away.  _

“He’s blowing me off.”

“Patrick, he’s not blowing you off. He actually is busy.”

“With what?”

Stevie picked up the papers in front of her, holding them out for Patrick to take. He looked at her for a moment and leaned forward, grabbing them out of her hands. He flipped through the pages quickly. It was a business proposal. One that seemed to have been accepted based on the signatures at the bottom of the last page. Patrick turned back to the front page. 

“What is Rose Apothecary?”

“That is what David has been busy with. Read it.” Patrick dove in, reading the proposal and forecast and all of it quickly. He finished it and started it again. He dove into the details, reading parts slowly. 

“This is amazing” he said quietly, setting it back on the desk. “No. Honestly this is one of the best business ideas I have ever seen. This could be huge.”

“Yes. He worked really hard on it. Apparently ‘someone’ once suggested he do something with all these contacts he has for these specialty products.” She cocked her eyebrows at Patrick. He could feel the blush spreading across his face. “So, he did. He spent his time away working on this and then last month, he came in and did a pitch. Patrick, you need to understand something. The David of a year ago would have just held out his hand and waited. He’s changed. You and Cora… well, you all have a lot to do with that. So, he decided he wanted to do something he cared about. He didn’t let anyone help him. And he nailed it. God, did he nail it. You should have seen him that day. I’ve never seen David command a room like that. It didn’t matter that his dad was at the table. Anyone would have taken on this investment.”

“It’s not a huge investment, though. He’s going to run out of money.”

“Yes, probably. I’ve seen the products. They are great. But he is struggling with price points and the whole money side of things.”

“Stevie, why are you even telling me this?”

“Patrick, David is hiring a business manager. He’s doing interviews today. And I happen to know that his 2 pm isn’t going to show up.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because it may have been Alexis pretending to be ‘Eric’ and ‘Eric’ has no intention of going to that interview.”

“I don’t understand.”

Stevie leaned forward, resting her arms on the desk. “You can interview for the accountant job here. I would imagine Jocelyn is probably walking around looking for you since I told my assistant to put you in here but to tell everyone else you were across the office in a different empty office. I can take you to Jocelyn right now. Or you can leave here and go take Eric’s interview time slot with David.”

Patrick narrowed his eyes at Stevie. “And what if I choose here? What are you going to do when ‘Eric’ no-shows for his interview?”

“Patrick, I think we both know what’s going to happen.”

Patrick stared at her for a moment. He opened his mouth as the door opened. A frazzled blonde stuck her head in the door. 

“Oh. Stevie. Hi. Sorry. I just… you wouldn’t happen to be Patrick Brewer would you?” Patrick looked at Stevie, who had a very neutral look on her face, staring back at him. 

“No, I’m afraid not. Sorry.”

The blonde sighed. “Well, shoot. Stevie, I think this guy just left after he checked in!”

“It happens, Jocelyn.” The other lady shrugged her shoulders and left. 

“Can I take those?” Patrick asked, pointing at the papers on the desk. 

“I made those for you, so yes.” Patrick pushed himself up, grabbing the proposal off the desk and headed to the door. 

“Oh, wait. Hold on.” He turned back to see Stevie writing something down a slip of paper. She folded it in half and handed it to him. 

“What’s this?”

“His coffee order. He gets a little grumpy about 2 or so and that should perk him right back up.”

Patrick smiled, shoving it in his pocket. “Should I go to any particular coffee shop?”

“It’s around the corner from the store. You can’t miss it.”

* * *

David glanced at the clock again. 2:10. 10 minutes late. The email exchanges with this guy felt weird anyway but David wanted to meet everyone who was interested in the job. So he scheduled it. And now the guy was 10 minutes late. David leaned over the spreadsheets in front of him, trying to make sense of it all. He had followed the YouTube instructions but it still didn’t make any sense. 

David heard the door open and took a moment to center himself, to not yell at this perfect stranger about being 10 minutes late. He slowly looked up.

“You’re not Eric.”

Patrick stood at the door, a large coffee cup in hand, giving him a slight smile. “I’m not. Eric isn’t coming.”

David narrowed his eyes. “Fucking Stevie.”

Patrick shrugged. “Actually I think the email was sent by Alexis but… yeah…”

David gave a slight nod. “What’s that?”

Patrick moved away from the door, toward the counter David was behind. He put the cup down. “A coffee for you. I have it on good authority you like yourself a 2 PM pick up.”

“Stevie talks too much.” He took the cup, taking a sip. “She also told you my order.” 

“She did. There was a line at the coffee shop. It’s why I’m late.”

“Late?”

“Yes. I hear you have a 2 PM interview opening for a business manager and I just so happen to be looking for a job.”

“Patrick… I…”

Patrick held up his hand. “David. Just wait. Please. So, in the interest of honesty in case you decide you want to work with me, I was actually at The Rose Group for an accountant interview, but Stevie slipped me your proposal. David, this is all really impressive and very sustainable. And the name is…”

“If one more person tells me it’s pretentious, I swear to God…”

“Then how about we go with timeless?” A David smile. Patrick would take it. Finally. An in.

“Timeless. I like that. Let’s go with timeless.”

“Yes. Let’s. Anyway, this is the exact kind of thing I pictured getting involved with after I graduated, but I could never find it.”

David sighed. “Fine. You got a resume on you?” Patrick smiled, pulling a copy of his resume from the leather portfolio he was carrying. David quickly looked it over and moved his gaze back up to Patrick.

“Lord, Patrick. You might just be overqualified for just about every business job around here. You should be going after my dad’s job. Why aren’t you?”

“I have Cora. I want to work somewhere she would be welcome, that understands I have a kid at home.”

David pressed his lips together, nodding as he looked back at Patrick’s resume. “Well, she would definitely be welcome here. You know that.”

“I do.”

David leaned his head to the side, turning the spreadsheets around to show Patrick. “Fine. Make me understand all of this.” Patrick took a moment to glance at the printouts. “Can I?” Patrick asked, motioning to the spot next to David. David nodded and Patrick rounded the counter, turning the computer toward him and David. For the next few hours, Patrick walked David through the numbers, the outlook, what the sheets were there for and how to really use them to help him maximize his supply and demand. The only thing that stopped them was the growl of David’s stomach. Patrick looked at his phone.

“Oh God, David. It’s after 4. I didn’t mean to take up your whole afternoon.”

“I thought you were leaving” David said quietly. 

Patrick turned toward David, leaning against the counter with his hip. “I was going to. But we aren’t. We are staying. There are things here that make me want to stay.” David finally pulled his eyes away from the spreadsheets, turning to mimic Patrick’s posture. Patrick watched him bite his lip to keep the smile from breaking out on his face. 

“There are?”

“Yes. There are.” Patrick swallowed hard as David took a slight step toward him. The mood suddenly shifted and for once, it didn’t make Patrick panic. It made him hopeful.

“I need to say something, David, and I need to get it all out. I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting the last few months. I know… I know my parents told you everything. And it’s fine. Lord knows I wouldn’t have. I would have run. I’m glad they forced the issue, honestly. Cora refusing to speak to me helped sway me too. But anyway, I owe you an apology. I want you to know that I’ve been working on it. Working on me. Cora demanded I find someone to talk to, so I’ve been seeing a therapist a couple of times a week since I got back from Rachel’s parents. It has been good. She’s helped me work through some things and she’s helped me realize what I want.”

“That’s good” David said quietly.

Patrick locked eyes with David. “David, you need to know… I know what I want. I promise I do. But I just…”

“Have some work to do.” David finished his sentence. That brave look on David’s face was empowering. Patrick reached out, grabbing David’s hand, lacing their fingers together lightly. David looked down, staring at their linked hands and looked back up at Patrick, no longer fighting the smile.

“I want this. I just need some time. I need to go slow. I can’t promise I won’t get scared again but… I want to try.”

“Me too.” Patrick knew his smile was just as wide as David’s.

“That’s really good to hear, David.”

David cleared his throat, glancing around the store. “I guess… so do you want the job?”

Patrick squeezed David’s hand. “I do.”

“It’s yours.” 

“Then it looks like we have some work to do, don’t we David?”

* * *

**DECEMBER**

David was putting the finishing touches on dinner when he heard his front door open. The loud chatter moved into the house, causing him to glance out of his kitchen. There, hanging up coats, were Stevie, Alexis, Patrick and Cora. It was New Years Eve. The store opened just in time for the holiday shopping season. It had been wonderful and busy and left him and Patrick drained at the end of their days. They had taken a lazy day on Christmas Day and David was determined to have at least one social event before this crazy year ended. 

“This is a lot different than past New Years, David” Alexis said as she slid up next to him.

“I’ve had enough overpriced drinks and cover charges to last me a lifetime. Let the amateurs have tonight.” Patrick finally met his gaze and David felt his cheeks flush.

“Are you two ever going to do more than stare at each other hotly from across the room?”

“Shut up, Alexis. It’s been busy.” She just shook her head and moved toward where David had set out the wine and glasses. Alexis handed David a glass and moved back to where Stevie and Cora had sat down on the couch, the TV turned to whatever New Years Eve show Cora wanted to watch. Patrick moved toward David, smiling widely.

“I have your beer in the fridge” David said, nodding toward the kitchen. Patrick moved around him, squeezing his arm as he moved. “Thank you, David.”

It had been like that since the afternoon Patrick came in for an interview. Heated looks, light touches, flirty banter and conversations about sloppy mouths and hard versus soft openings. 

“Thanks for having us over for dinner tonight, David. Cora was very excited to wear her new dress.”

“Well, Alexis had a ball shopping with her that day. I’m afraid I may have been replaced as Cora’s favorite Rose.”

“Oh, don’t worry, David. You’re still mine.” David slid his eyes over to Patrick, who was standing close enough that David could feel the heat coming off his body.

“Glad to hear it.”

Patrick held out his beer bottle. “To new adventures in the new year.” David waggled his eyebrows and clinked his wine glass against Patrick’s bottle.

“Can you two stop flirting so we can eat and get back to the show?” Stevie said as the three of the ladies walked past them into the kitchen. 

The food was plentiful, catered in by a vendor dying to get products into the Apothecary. The drinks flowed as did the conversation. David and Patrick had exchanged glances and smiles throughout the meal and he helped David clean up while the other three went back to watch more of the show. They bumped hips and stayed close to each other. Even once they got into the living room, Patrick sat right next to David, arm slung over the back of the couch. Something had shifted today and David was here for it. 

Cora did her best to make it to midnight, but a little after 11:30, she fell asleep for good. Her head on Alexis’ lap, snoring through whatever boy group she had really wanted to stay up to see. David had gone back into the kitchen to get rid of the glasses. Patrick looked at his daughter. “I guess I should take her home.”

Alexis and Stevie exchanged glances. “Or…” Stevie said.

“Or?” Patrick replied.

“Or Stevie and I can take Cora home and crash there cause Lord knows neither one of us should be driving and we don’t really want to pay surge pricing for an Uber…”

“Preach” Stevie slurred.

Alexis shook her head at Stevie. “And you can follow through on whatever is going on with you and David tonight.” Patrick’s eyes went wide. “You aren’t subtle, Patrick. Plus, he’s so walking on eggshells with you. He really doesn’t want to spook you again or whatever. You are going to have to make the first move.”

Patrick pressed his lips together. “Are you two sure?”

“Fuck yes, Patrick. You two need to make out or whatever cause this flirty dance thing is nauseating.”

“Glad to know we have your support, Stevie.”

Alexis shook Cora’s shoulder, waking her up enough to get her moving. Patrick watched the three of them walk over to his house, waiting till he heard the front door close before heading back inside. 

David was in the kitchen, washing the last of the wine glasses. “Did I hear the front door?”

“Stevie and Alexis took Cora home.”

David looked over his shoulder, a look of sadness on his face. “Oh. Yeah. You probably want to get over there so…”

“Or…” Patrick said, moving slowly toward David. David turned, eyes widening with each step Patrick took toward him. Patrick leaned in, resting his hands on the edge of the countertop, bracketing David with his arms. David lightly rested his hands on Patrick’s biceps.

“You said or…” David whispered.

“I did. Or I could not go over there.”

“Oh?” David asked, biting his lip, drawing Patrick’s eyes to his mouth.  _ Fuck,  _ David thought,  _ that’s hot. _

“I saw my therapist this morning before I came to the store.” David knitted his eyebrows together. “OK?”

“Yeah, she’s out of town for the next two weeks and she wanted to have one more session before she left. She asked what my plans were for tonight so I told her we were coming here for dinner. Wanna know what she asked me?”

“What?” David said breathlessly.

Patrick’s eyes locked on David’s. “She asked me if we had kissed yet. I told her no. She asked me why.”

“What did you say?” David’s heart was hammering against this chest and he was sure Patrick could hear it. And he really didn’t care.

Patrick breathed out the breath he had been holding. “I told her it was because I knew. I knew that once I kissed you, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to stop. That I had to be ready for that. That you needed to be ready for that. She said she understood that, but guess what else she said?” David could only shrug. “She said ‘Once you open your door to one person, anyone can come in’ and that I should really consider opening that door to you cause she was sure it would bring me some peace and happiness.”

“You need to kiss me” David whispered. 

“Yeah” Patrick replied, pressing his lips to David’s. It was soft and tentative but full of promises. Patrick pulled back, eyes wide, breathing heavier than it had been. 

“Fuck” he said as he launched himself at David, wrapping his arms around David’s waist tightly. David looped his arms around Patrick’s shoulders. This kiss was fierce and messy and dirty and oh so right. Patrick pressed himself into David, hips to lips. He moved his lips off of David’s and down his neck and David let out a loud moan as Patrick nipped at his pulse point. David took a chance as he pulled up his leg, wrapping it around Patrick’s hip. Patrick actually growled as he sucked a mark on David’s neck that he knew he would hear about tomorrow from Alexis, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was Patrick’s mouth and hands and the noises he was making. 

David needed a moment. He put his hands on Patrick’s face, pulling him up so he could see his eyes, his face. He was wrecked. He looked how David felt. It was exhilarating. 

“Stay with me tonight?” David didn’t really mean to ask. It just kind of fell out of his mouth. “We don’t have to do anything, Patrick. I just don’t want you to go.”

“Yeah” Patrick breathed out, pressing a light kiss to David’s lips. Soon, they were headed up to David’s room, hand in hand, both of them smiling wider than they had in a very long time.

* * *

The light was just starting to come in the window as David rolled over, rolling into Patrick. They had talked, kissed and gotten half naked, getting each other off a couple of times before sleep took over. It had only been a few hours since they had fallen asleep, but David needed to touch him again. Patrick sighed as David wrapped his arm around him, pulling his back against his chest. 

“What time is it?” Patrick asked quietly.

“Way too fucking early.”

“David…”

“Fine. Alexa, what time is it?”

“It is 7:04 am.”

“See, Patrick… way too fucking early.”

Patrick rolled over, smiling at David. “We’ve got roughly 90 minutes before Cora is up looking for food.”

“Let Alexis deal with it.”

“David!”

David growled and rolled his head back. “I want to go back to sleep.”

“That’s fine. But I need to go and…”

“No. With you here.”

Patrick smiled, kissing him on both cheeks. “David…”

“Fine. FINE! But you are buying donuts and coffee.”

“Obviously.”

By 8:32 AM, they were walking into Patrick’s to find Stevie and Alexis sitting at the table, sipping coffee. They looked up as Patrick walked in with boxes of pastries.

“Oh thank God! We told Cora she had to get dressed before food cause we had no idea what to do about that.”

“I figured” Patrick said, putting the boxes on the counter. Stevie smiled wickedly at David as he sat down next to her.

“So you two boys have a productive night?”

“Gross, Stevie. But yes, yes we did.” Before anything else could be said, Cora bounded into the kitchen. “DONUTS !” She yelled, pulling open one of the boxes. She shoved half of it in her mouth, trying to smile at the adults all staring at her.

She swallowed the donut, looking up at her dad. “I’m glad David is back.”

“Me too” Patrick said, looking at David.

* * *

**JUNE**

“I can’t believe it’s the last day of school” Patrick said, taking a drink of his tea as he did paperwork at the desk in the back room at the Apothecary. 

“I can’t believe that art teacher wouldn’t let Cora do the project on…”

“Please drop it, David. That was like 3 months ago.”

“Still.”

Patrick got out of the chair, pulling David into him. It had been almost 6 months and having David this close still gave him butterflies in his stomach. He pressed a light kiss to David’s lips.

“I still think you should let me talk to the school board.”

“Cora would never forgive you.”

“We wouldn’t have to tell her.”

“David, you can’t keep anything from that child. It’s a little concerning.”

“It’s those puppy dog eyes. Those Brewer eyes kill me every time.”

“I love you, David.” It just slipped out. Patrick knew he meant it. He had been thinking it for a long time, probably since he kissed David in his kitchen on New Years. But he knew he had to show David. Show him through actions and just being here. Sure, the desire to run had come up a few times. There was the time Rachel’s parents had surprised them for a visit. When David made a decision for Cora that he didn’t talk to Patrick about first. There had been fights and frustrations and other moments that in the past would have sent Patrick fleeing. But with David, he wanted to stay. He wanted to work and be here, in the moment, with him and Cora, together. He knew he loved David. 

David froze, staring wildly at Patrick. Patrick cleared his throat. “David, I won’t apologize for saying it. I mean it. I have for a while, you should know. But I know that you…”

“I love you too, Patrick.” Just when he thought David couldn’t surprise him anymore, he does something unexpected. 

Patrick laughed, pulling him in for a kiss. They stood there, lost in each other, until they heard a noise from behind them.

They let go of each other, turning to see Cora staring at them from the doorway to the back office from the front of the store.

David cleared his throat, running his hand through his hair. “Hey. Cora. Yeah, so we were just…”

She waved her hands around, quieting David. “Yeah yeah yeah. You love him and he loves you. Did you get Funyuns?”

“There’s fruit smoothies in the cooler, Cora” Patrick said.

Cora rolled her eyes at her dad as she looked up at David. “Does that mean no Funyuns?”

“There’s Funyuns.” 

“Cool!” Cora bounced off to where David stashed her snacks for when she came in after school. 

Patrick rolled his eyes at David, patting him on the shoulder. “Sucker.”

“For a Brewer? It’s my curse.”


End file.
